1. Field of the Invention
Embodiments of the invention generally relate to an ultraviolet (UV) cure chamber. More particularly, embodiments of the invention relate to a tandem UV chamber for performing cure processes of dielectric films on substrates and clean processes of surfaces within the tandem chamber.
2. Description of the Related Art
Silicon oxide (SiO), silicon carbide (SiC) and carbon doped silicon oxide (SiOC) find extremely widespread use in the fabrication of semiconductor devices. One approach for forming silicon containing films on a semiconductor substrate is through the process of chemical vapor deposition (CVD) within a chamber. Organosilicon supplying materials are often utilized during CVD of the silicon containing films. As a result of the carbon present in such a silicon supplying material, carbon containing films can be formed on the chamber walls as well as on the substrate.
Water is often a by-product of the CVD reaction of oganosilicon compounds and can be physically absorbed into the films as moisture. Moisture in the air inside the substrate fab provides another source of moisture in un-cured films. The ability of the film to resist water uptake while in queue for subsequent manufacturing processes is important in defining a stable film. The moisture is not part of stable films, and can later cause failure of dielectric material during device operation.
Accordingly, undesirable chemical bonds and compounds such as water are preferably removed from a deposited carbon containing film. More importantly, thermally unstable organic fragments of sacrificial materials (resulting from porogens used during CVD to increase porosity) need to be removed. It has been suggested to utilize ultraviolet radiation to aid in the post treatment of CVD silicon oxide films. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,566,278 and 6,614,181, both to Applied Materials, Inc. and incorporated herein in their entirety, describe use of UV light for post treatment of CVD carbon-doped silicon oxide films.
Therefore, there exists a need in the art for a UV curing chamber which can be used to effectively cure films deposited on substrates. A further need exists for a UV curing chamber that can increase throughput, consume a minimum of energy and be adapted for in situ cleaning processes of surfaces within the chamber itself.